140 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



rEB" 



Such hives are not manufactured, and the tenden- 

 cy of the entire bee-world is toward other styles of 

 hives; but this doesn't prevent my using- such hives 

 as have given me the best practical results. 

 Cuba. O. O. POPPLETON. 



I use the Quinby standing frame, which is 10x1,5 

 inches, inside measure. It is equally perfect, 

 whether you use one frame for nuclei or 16 side by 

 side, as necessity may require. For boxing, I use 



6 and 1; for extracting, .53; and for wintering, 6 and 



7 combs. If I were obliged to adopt a fixed size of 

 brood-nest I would use eight of those frames. I 

 prefer this frame because I can adapt the size of 

 the brood-nest to the strength of colony, to the dif- 

 ferent seasons, and to all localities. 



Connecticut. S. W. L. C. Root. 



If the propagation of bees and wintering only 

 werS my object, then I should prefer a cubical 

 brood-nest, because their stores and cluster are 

 more compact and comfortable, and the cluster can 

 move gradually upward where it is warm, as their 

 stores, surrounding them, become consumed. But 

 as honey is my object, and as I know that bees can 

 be wintered safely in a shallow frame, I prefer the 

 Langstroth style of brood-chamber, because I know 

 that I can produce a larger crop of honey, the larg- 

 er the surface above the brood-chamber. 



Ohio. S. W. C. F. Mdth. 



a. The brood-nest of my hives usually contains 

 either 12T6 or 2.553 cubic inches in the shape of 

 either one or two brood-chambers ll'/axl^i inside, 

 and 6 inches deep. It makes little or no difference 

 to the bees whether the brood-nest is cubical or 

 not; and it is much more advantageous to the bee- 

 keeper to have it shallow, b. Because it gives a 

 control over the management of the bees and the 

 disposition of their stores which in other forms of 

 hives is not possible, or can be gained only by nu- 

 merous appliances and greatly increased manipula- 

 tion. 



Illinois. N. C. J. A. Green. 



a. We prefer the large Quinby suspended frame 

 (see our answer to No. 151). Our hives can accom- 

 modate 11 of these frames, b. According to our 

 experience, a comb longer horizontally is better 

 than a square one, for the queen, in spring, is una- 

 ble to lay her eggs in a regular disk. She wants to 

 lay in circles; but, as the lower part of the disk 

 covered with brood is cooler than its sides, the work- 

 ers refuse to descend, and the disk is flattened at 

 the bottom and enlarged at the sides, taking the 

 form of a horizontal oval. Father Langstroth was, 

 therefore, well prompted when he adopted the hor- 

 izontal frame. 



Illinois. N. W. Dadant & Son. 



We favor a large hive. Our Langstroth hives 

 hold 8 frames. For comb honey we use just the 8 

 frames for a brood-nest; but for winter we give 

 them two sets of eight combs — one set over ihe oth- 

 er, with nothing between the upper and lower 

 set. For extracting we prefer to use the L. frames, 

 three stories high, 34 frames in all. We raise but 

 little comb honey, and that at home. As our comb- 

 honey colonies are worked with one set of 8 combs, 

 we take another set of eight combs full of honey 

 from a third story of a colony that is run for ex- 

 tracted honey, and put it on the comb-honey colo- 

 ny to winter it. Then they both have two sets of 



eight frames. But for (xtracling we prefer our" 

 tall frame, w hich is 21 by i:! inches, 21 high, i:{ wide. 

 In our shot-tower hives we use two sets of nine of 

 those tall frames, one set above. The others get 

 more honey per colony; winter better and swarm- 

 less. 

 Wisconsin. S. W. E. France. 



We prefer a brood-nest that can be contracted or ' 

 expanded. It is not material for the brood-nest to 

 be of a cubical sbape. b. The shallow brood-cham- 

 ber was adopted in our yard for the following rea- 

 sons: They are easier to manipulate than any oth- 

 er style; bees can be driven from an entire casein 

 a few minutes, and the case be carried to the ex- 

 tracting-room. The same can be returned without 

 exposing combs to robbers, and bees are not excit- 

 ed to anger as by the old brush-and-bust-'em meth- 

 od. The shallow brood-nest is also just the thing 

 for making artificial swarms. In fact, we can not- 

 here enumerate half the advantages. 



New York. B. Rambler^ 



If the brood-nest is to be kept one size all the 

 year round— that is, where contraction is not prac- 

 ticed—the capacity of eight Langstroth frames is 

 my preference, and I have used them in considera- 

 ble quantities, varying from six to twenty-four. I 

 do not tnink it a matter of much importance for 

 wintering, what the shape of the brood-nest is. 

 The theory that the queen will lay more eggs, and 

 that the bees will winter better in a cubical or tall 

 hive, is only a theory. It is not so at all. If any 

 thing, it is just the reverse that is true. I have 

 never had my bees winter so well in any hive as in 

 very shallow, long, flat hives. Were I going to 

 start an apiary now, and adhere to the suspended 

 frame, not using my divisible brood-chamber, and 

 not caring to have my hives and frames of any 

 standard size, the same as others use, I would make 

 an eight-frame hive taking a frame just 4,V inches 

 longer than the standard Langstroth, and enough 

 shallower to leave It the same capacity. Of course,, 

 bees keep a little warmer in a shallow hive, because 

 they will be closer to the top of it, not having a 

 great open space above them to heat, and heat does 

 not pass away sidewise or laterally as rapidly as it 

 does upward. The bees move slowly in a lateral 

 direction as they use up the stores. After all, it 

 makes but little difference about safety in winter- 

 ing, for bee-diarrhea is the sole cause of our winter 

 losses, and the depth of the frame or hive does not 

 cause bee-diarrhea. Still, the flat hive is the best. 

 They are ever so much the best in which to store 

 surplus honey, either comb or extracted, and such 

 frames manipulate more easily. My reasons for 

 adopting the new brood-nest I am now using with 

 the small shallow frames, is, that I use two sets of 

 frames to one brood-chamber; and with a horizon- 

 tally divisible brood-chamber I get the advantage* 

 of both deep and shallow hives. By interchanging 

 the brood-sections, I get more surplus comb honey. 

 I can keep the brood up to the surplus honey re- 

 ceptacles all the time, and I do it with emotion, so- 

 to speak. It is one of the correct theories that ia 

 quick, safe, and easy to practice. That is the 

 beauty of it. There are many correct theories 

 which are practically false or worthless, you know. 

 There are a dozen other reasons for preferring this 

 divisible brood-chamber, but I must not take up 

 any more room in this department. 

 Michigan. S. W. James Heddon. 



